Arrival at Ben Gurion Airport. Meet & assist by an Inspire representative. Transfer to your hotel. Dinner & overnight in the northern Negev area.
After breakfast enjoy a fascinating presentation and tour about the global revolution in irrigation and fertilizer methods for modern agriculture.
Continue for a visit to “Jojoba” fields. Learn about the Jojoba plant, how it is grown and how its oil is produced for the global cosmetics industry.
Next discover the Secrets of Desert Agriculture in Israel. The tour proudly presents the astounding achievements of the Ramat Negev region in the development of flourishing agriculture, against all odds in extreme desert conditions, using brackish water in sandy ground.
Solar-Thermal Power Station
The tour presents the largest solar powered station in Israel. During the tour, the three types of technologies will be explained, but we will concentrate on the solar-thermal power station in Plot B, which creates electricity by solar-thermal hybrid tower technology more than 200 meters high.
Return to your hotel for dinner & overnight.
After breakfast, visit a boutique vegetable farm in the heart of the Negev desert which specializes in growing Asian medicinal vegetables and super-food. Thanks to the use of unique, innovative techniques adapted to the desert, the produce is considered the best in Israel. We will tour the assorted greenhouses, become familiar with various growing techniques and taste the exclusive produce, while listening to the family’s special story.
Next visit a local winery, which is located in a hidden river valley and is built on the remains of an ancient agricultural settlement from the Byzantine period. The vineyard was carefully planted to preserve the ancient terraces and to utilize their previous irrigation system. Today, this desert farm produces wine from grapes cultivated in the vineyards; Red grape varieties of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Barbara, and Pettit Verdot were planted alongside the white varieties of Chardonnay and Viognier etc.
Return to your hotel for dinner & overnight.
Day 4: Medicinal herbs & spices / Organic desert farm / Pom Grande Orchards
After breakfast, meet the farmers of the Negev desert.
Visit a unique ecological farm. On the farm you will find medicinal herbs and spices grown in the traditional ways of the ancient land of Israel, together with a rich fruit orchard, Argan trees from Morocco and a variety of beneficial plants from all over the world. You will get to smell, taste and feel the texture of the medicinal herbs and get acquainted with their various qualities. You will also hear about ecological methods of growing them and see demonstrations of how agriculture and the environment can go hand in hand.
Next visit an organic farm combining traditional methods with advanced desert agriculture. The farm itself acts as a complete ecological system with interactions between soil, microorganisms, animals and plants, striving for a healthy balance between them all. In the fields and greenhouses, dozens of types of vegetables grow, which vary according to the season, alongside fruit orchards of various types, and provide fresh organic produce to the residents of the Negev. On the tour, you will visit the various crops, hear the story of the farm, understand what organic agriculture is during the 21st century and taste the healthy and delicious organic produce straight from the field.
Our last stop for today is at a Pomegranate farm. Have a professional tour in a pom orchard in the desert, and get acquainted with newly developed growing techniques and adjusting them to desert growing condition such as:
Salty water and their influence
Coping with direct sun radiation
Watering techniques and water maintenance
Trellising system
Process of ground building and preventing of drift in sandy ground
Dinner & overnight in a local Khan.
After breakfast, drive to the Arava region. The Arava desert is characterized by extreme climate conditions. It is the driest region in Israel with very little rainfall (< 50mm/annum), and saline soil and water. Despite these challenges, the Agriculture in the Arava thrives and the 5 villages of the region produce about 60% of Israel’s fresh vegetables for export.
The Research and Development Station (R&D) of the Arava invites farmers and agronomists to learn from the variety of experiments and unique growing methods developed in the Arava. The professional agricultural tours are adjusted according to the specific professional field of the group. The subjects of the tour include development of alternative growing substrates, irrigation, pest control, climate control in the greenhouse and various agrotechnical methods.
Continue to a professional tour in an advanced aquaculture fish farm. The tour offers a great opportunity for a close look at the world of tropical fish and the challenges of growing and breeding fish in the desert.
Next visit this family’s fields, where they have been growing tomatoes, eggplants, melons and grapes for over 40 years.
Drive to the most southern city in Israel, built on the shores of the Red Sea – Eilat.
Dinner & overnight in Eilat.
After breakfast visit a Dairy Farm of dairy cows. The cows are milked in a state-of-the-art carousel milking parlor that includes 48 stalls. Each cow has an electronic identification tag that enables pinpointing problems and providing quick solutions, using a computerized management system.
Next learn about the types of dates in the Arava – an opportunity to see the dates up close and learn about the differences in growing the various types of dates, why they differ in flavor and how the texture of each type is created.
One of the challenges in the Arava is to strive to subsist from the fruits of the land and attempting to create a myriad of products from a single crop. Acquaint yourself with the magical world of the date products:
Tasting and enjoying the sweetness of the date fruit
The distinct flavor of date liqueur and beer also made from dates.
Silan (Date Honey) & Date Spread
End the tour at the Pomelo orchard to learn about the success of growing Citrus fruit on completely arid land.
Return to your hotel for dinner & overnight.
Today is a full day learning about Renewable energy and some of the newest technologies available. In contrast, also learn about the newest inventions of off-grid systems such as water filtration systems, Bio Gas production, Electricity production and much more.
Visit an Experimental field specializing in growing African plants and crops in extreme desert conditions. Here you can also find the Argan Tree. In Bible days, oil was produced from the fruits of this tree (and still is today), and the future kings were Anointed with it.
Next is a visit to learn about the developing and production of modern agricultural products in semi-arid and arid regions. Meet with officials of a local company that develops sustainable agricultural businesses in developed areas and emerging economies, with expertise in transformation in semi-arid and arid regions. The tour includes visits to farms with open-field irrigated crops, greenhouses with high-quality vegetables and record yields, as well as a packing house & post-harvest facility for high-quality exports.
Drive to Jerusalem. Dinner & overnight in Jerusalem
Today is a full day touring in Jerusalem.
Begin your day at the Mount of Olives, and see the panorama of the City from there. Walk the Palm Sunday Road to the Garden of Gethsemane to see the Rock of Agony the place where Jesus prayed before the Roman soldiers came for Him. Next enter the walls of the Old City. Walk through the colorful bazars to the Church of St. Anne. Walk the Via Dolorosa starting from the first station (condemnation) to the 14th station inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Visit the Jewish Quarter where the remains of the holy temple and the Wailing Wall.
Visit Bethlehem. Free time will be given for exploring and personal shopping.
Dinner & overnight in Jerusalem